NASCAR’s charter disagreement with teams is at a breaking point as playoffs arrive

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR’s 10-race playoffs begin Sunday at Atlanta Motor Speedway under something of a cloud. The teams and NASCAR are bitterly locked in a years-long feud on an extension of the franchise system at the heart of the business. The teams want a bigger share of the revenue pie, a seat at the negotiating table and for charters — they guarantee a spot in any Cup Series race and thus part of the purse — to become permanent. Every single proposal made to the teams has been deemed unacceptable. The charters expire at the end of the year.